Maryland Personal Injury Attorney|April Newsletter

Take a look back on the rainy month of April with our latest newsletter!

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Maryland Personal Injury Attorney|Distracted Drivers to Face Harsher Penalties

Just last week, Governor Martin O'Malley signed the bill for Jake's Law into the books. The law is named after Jake Owen, a 5-year-old boy from South Baltimore who died after a distracted driver crashed into his family's vehicle in 2011. The law creates harsher penalties and jail time for drivers that cause serious or fatal car accidents while talking or texting on their cell phones. The idea behind the law is to make distracted driving similar to drunk driving. The Owen family was shattered when Jake was killed, but when the distracted driver was only fined $1,000 as a result of the crash, they were livid. At the time of the trial, many jury members did not consider talking or texting on the phone while driving to be reckless behavior. Now, a judge may impose a jail sentence up to one year and a $5,000 fine if a driver causes a serious or fatal accident while texting or talking on the phone. It is essential for all drivers to be careful while driving and to know, now more than ever, to put down the phone.

Personal Injury Attorney Strengthens Korean Department to Serve Growing Community

Our amazing Korean Department has been featured in the press!

Maryland Personal Injury|Pre-Settlement Funding

Being involved in an accident can become a financial burden. There are unexpected daily expenses that arise as a result of being injured in an automobile accident. Many are inclined to take out pre-settlement loans to ease their financial burdens.

Be warned, there are many pit falls to pre-settlement loans. These are not like traditional loans that you would receive from your bank. The interest on pre-settlement loans is very high and increases the longer the loan goes unpaid. Typically, rates range from 2% to 4%, plus fees, compounded every single month. A $1,000.00 loan could cost you $1,601.03 after a year. That is a 60% increase.

Pre-Settlement funding companies woo clients with misdirection and word play. They tell clients that the loan is not a direct cost to them, but rather a cost against their final settlement. Any cost against the final settlement is a cost to the client. The money for repayment of that loan comes out of the client's portion of the settlement proceeds. The loans, like any lien on a case, must be paid before medical expenses. Depending on the age of the loan and the compounded interest, clients could find themselves receiving nothing out of their settlement. Further, clients could find themselves receiving nothing out of their settlement and still owing money for medical expenses.

It is true that if your case is not successful, you do not pay back the loan. However, success can come at a high cost.

We caution our clients against taking these loans unless absolutely necessary and only after they have exhausted all of their option such as seeking financial assistance from their families and friends or their private lending institution. If you find yourself in a position to take a pre-settlement loan, it is recommended that you take only a small amount of money, essentially take only what you absolutely need. Do not borrow yourself out of your own recovery.

Maryland Personal Injury Attorney|Newsletter

Check out our March Newsletter

Maryland Dog Bite Attorney|New Bill Seeks to Make All Dog Owners Liable For Bites

In 2012, the Court of Appeals made the controversial ruling that outraged dog lovers across the state: owners of pure bred pit bulls would be held strictly liable for all bites because pit bulls were deemed inherently dangerous. To top it off, landlords could be held liable as well. This court ruling caused many pit bulls to be put into shelters and many landlords to ban pit bulls from their property.

A new bill has been proposed to take another look at dog bites and liability. This bill would set a measure that applies to all dogs, no matter their breed, and would presume that all dog owners are liable for a dog bite, even if that dog has not bitten anyone before. In addition, the law would allow for owners to neutralize that presumption by showing that their dog had been docile before the bite occurred.

The previous breed-specific law caused uproar amongst dog lovers and made many disproportionately wary of pit bulls. This new proposed law holds all dog owners equally responsible for the actions of their dogs and is sure to gain favor in this respect, but some remain wary that the ability to neutralize the presumption would allow dog owners to escape responsibility entirely.  We will have to wait to see what a dog owner will actually have to show in order to prove that their dog was 'docile' before a fight. For the sake of dog bite victims, I hope that the standard is high.